


Warriors Rewritten: Into the Wild

by MageWolf



Series: Warriors Rewritten [1]
Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Blood and Gore, Canon Rewrite, LGBTQ Cats (Warriors), Multi, RiverClan (Warriors), ShadowClan (Warriors), StarClan (Warriors), The Prophecies Begin: Book 1: Into the Wild, ThunderClan (Warriors), Why Did I Write This?, WindClan (Warriors)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-19
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-15 11:40:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,239
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29558541
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MageWolf/pseuds/MageWolf
Summary: Reboot of my old Warriors rewrite. Yes, I know I posted it but I changed little and I want to revamp the writing(Will also double as the sorta-script for my comic version)
Series: Warriors Rewritten [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2171595
Comments: 4
Kudos: 6





	1. Prologue

The silver, frosty moon was a wedge in the sky tonight. The cold nipped and clawed like a badger, tearing the landscape into ruins. The pale moonlight bounced off a collection of rock large and small, the river that ran beside it quietly murmuring. On one side of the river lay a flatland decorated with willow trees and the occasional birch or alder, streams running amok throughout the land. On the opposite side sat a huge forest, the trees seemingly tall enough to scrape the sky and the undergrowth seemingly enough to choke out any who dared live there.

Soon, crowds of cats poured from either side of the river, the one coming from the flatlands swimming gracefully to the rocks, and the cats arriving from the forest creeping silently forwards. Their eyes were narrow chips of aggression, circling each other around the rocks with claws out. Low growls and hisses roses from the felines, the tension thick enough to choke a cow.

And then, with the flick of an ear and the twitch of a tail, all hell broke lose as the cats launched themselves towards each other, grappling and hissing and biting each other.

In the midst of the fighting, a huge tabby tom smacked a smaller cinnamon colored tom right in the face, dazing him. The split second was enough for the tabby, his brown fur a blur as he bowled the other tom over. The cinnamon tom snarled as the hulking tom pinning him down placed an unsheathed paw over his throat.

“A killing blow, Tigerclaw?!” He snapped, “I knew you ThunderClan cats were rotten snakes!”

The tabby curled his lips in disgust, eyes narrowing. “I won’t waste my breath on you fish-faces! You all know good and well that Bluestar said this land was ThunderClan’s!”

“Ha! Fat chance in VoidClan!” The smaller tom chuckled. This smugness made Tigerclaw growl, claws digging into the tom’s neck.

Before he could teach the arrogant tom a lesson though, a pale gray molly cried out, “Look out, more RiverClan cats are coming!”

Tigerclaw whipped his head around, eyes wide as saucers as he stared at the new cats. Many were already across the river, launching themselves in battle with triumphant yowls. Most of the ThunderClan cats yowled in shock, the battle becoming even more frantic as they were ganged up on by two, three, even four RiverClan warriors.

Tigerclaw snarled and turned his head back to the tom, lips peeled back in rage. His pale amber eyes were like chips of pure fury.

“And here I thought you were above such tricks, Oakheart!” Tigerclaw snapped. Oakheart simply smirked and was about to retort, but both toms with interrupted by a molly’s desperate yowl.

Both looked up to see a pale brown molly being pinned down by a large silver tabby tom, his lips curling into a snarl as his watched the molly underneath him squirm and hiss.

“Time to die, ThunderClan scum!” He hissed, jaw reaching for her throat. The molly let out a panicked yowl, her wide yellow eyes turning to Tigerclaw in a wordless plea for help.

The hulking tabby didn’t think anymore. Instinct simply screamed at him to help his clanmate.

He launched himself off of Oakheart and bowled the other tom over, screeching in righteous fury. The other tom attempted to squirm underneath Tigerclaw, but the tom had him thoroughly pinned. He shouted over his shoulder to the molly, “Run Mousefur, run!”

She took off as soon as those words left his mouth, dodging the remaining fighting cats and sprinting into the woods.

Tigerclaw watched her go, only to feel a stinging pain on his left cheek, the tom’s claws tearing the flesh. The tabby tom growled lowly at the RiverClan warrior, who was now readying his muscles for another attack. Tigerclaw yowled a battle cry and charged at him, catching the RiverClan cat off guard. The tabby sank his teeth into his tail, eliciting a loud cry of pain. The warrior attempted to run for it, but Tigerclaw held on, digging his claws into the cat’s haunches, blood dripping onto the sand.

Finally, with an ear-piercing yowl, the RiverClan warrior rolled on the ground, dislodging the large tom from his tail, and dashing to the other side of the river. Tigerclaw watched him go with a smug smirk, tail twitching with satisfaction.

Just as Tigerclaw was about to throw himself back into the fray, a small white tom with ginger patches running down his back and streaked to him, his fluffy tail hung low. He was badly injured, a collection of scratches running down his side and a torn ear that trickled blood.

“Tigerclaw!” The small tom yelled over the yowling, “This fight is pointless! We’re outnumbered!”

“No, Redtail! ThunderClan won’t ever be beaten; This is our territory!” Tigerclaw snapped. His ears were flattened angrily and his tail lashed in fury. How dare Redtail suggest they turn tail now?! After this battle, RiverClan would assume they can take whatever they want from ThunderClan!

Redtail’s muzzle drew into a snarl as he snapped, “Tigerclaw, listen for once, you battle hungry mouse-brain! We’re outnumbered and most of our warriors are injured! We cannot afford to lose anymore cats this winter! We _need_ to retreat!”

Tigerclaw growled but didn’t argue as the small white tom leaped onto a tall, lopsided boulder, tail hung low in defeat.

“Retreat ThunderClan! Retreat!” Redtail yowled to his warriors. The ThunderClan cats gaped in surprise before tearing themselves away from their opponents and running into the forest. Redtail and Tigerclaw followed after them, although the large tabby tom paused to look back at the battlefield.

The RiverClan cats were cheering, yowling triumphantly and chattering excitedly. Oakheart stood on the same rock Redtail had, overlooking his warriors with pride.

Tigerclaw narrowed his eyes, tail lashing in disappointment. He then slipped into the forest, following the faint scent trail of his clanmates.

*******

A few hours later, quiet snoring and mumbling filled the gorge ThunderClan called home. The moon was getting lower in the sky, not quite Twilight but getting close.

On a large rock jutting from the walls of the gorge sat a gray molly, her blue eyes transfixed on the night sky. Her eyes were searching for something, brows furrowed in concentration. Her tail tip twitched in thought, ears straining to hear something, anything.

“Bluestar?”

The molly jerked her head around to see whoever had called out to her, only to relax at the sight of a calico molly with soft amber eyes.

“Ah, Spottedleaf.” Bluestar meowed, “There you are.”. As the calico came forward and sat down beside her, she asked, “How’s Mousefur?”

“Her wounds are deep, but she’s young. If she takes it easy for a few days, she should fine.”. Spottedleaf then chuckled, “Although, warriors these days don’t seem to know how to take it easy!”

The calico molly giggled but trailed off when she saw Bluestar’s strong shoulders droop.

“We were lucky to not have lost any warriors tonight...” She sighed. Spottedleaf blinked in surprise.

“Why? Do you think Crookedstar would... kill?”

“Perhaps. It’s been a harsh leafbare for every clan but RiverClan. They know we’re low on numbers and weak, so I wouldn’t put it past them...”

She lowered her head away from Spottedleaf, tail curling around her body in worry. Spottedleaf’s eyes widened in shock.

“But Bluestar,” She began, “Newleaf is coming! The cold is dying down, prey is returning, herbs are re-growing, and Goldenflower is due any day now!”

The gray molly beside her nodded her head, although her troubled expression told the calico she was going to disagree.

“Perhaps, but training warriors takes time. Far more time than we have...” Bluestar murmured, turning her head back to the stars

The calico stood up at this point, concerned and exasperated. She said, “Blue, it’ll be okay! You don’t have to act like doomsday is coming all the time!”

“...I don’t know, Spotty, I just don’t know...”

“Exactly!” Spottedleaf continued, looking up at the sky too, “ThunderClan will be- “

Suddenly, a shooting star streaked across the night sky. Bluestar didn’t think much of it at first but turned her head to Spottedleaf to say something to her. However, the medicine cat was transfixed on the sky, eyes wide and claws sliding in and out of their sheaths. Her fur was bristled and her tail was bushed to twice its size. Bluestar quirked a brow.

“Spottedleaf?” She inquired, approaching the medicine cat. However, the usually bubbly calico did not respond, eyes seemingly seeing something far, far away from ThunderClan.

“Spottedleaf, are you okay?” The tall gray molly was getting concerned. Was she receiving a prophecy?

Before Bluestar could see if her medicine cat was okay, the calico’s eyes suddenly re-focused. She was still shaking, but she seemed conscious now. Bluestar stared as her expression turned from bewilderment to excitement, her eyes lighting up and ears perking.

“Bluestar! I’ve received a message from StarClan!” Spottedleaf gushed, “We have guidance! They said fire alone will save our clan!”

The leader, however, was horrified by these words. Her eyes widened and her ears flattened in fear, murmuring to herself, “Fire?! But... fire is a scourge upon clan territory!”

Bluestar’s icy eyes turned to the calico and she asked, “Are you sure that’s what you heard?”

Spottedleaf paused, furrowing her brows as she recalled the words their ancestors had told her.

“Well... I don’t know... But this _is_ what I heard from them.”

Bluestar’s eyes searched for any sort of untruthfulness in Spottedleaf’s gaze, but she seemed genuine and earnest. The gray molly sighed.

“Well, if that is what you heard, then I suppose it’s so... fire alone will save our clan...”


	2. Chapter One

_Two moons later..._

The moonlight shone down on the scraggly, dark forest, the fat moon hanging in the sky above the treetops. The light breeze rustled the leaves and branches of the trees and bushes, creating a gentle song that resonated throughout the forest.

A mouse tentatively poked its head from its burrow, cautiously sniffing around for predators. When it decided no one was around, it scampered off to the base of a tree and began rooting around for seeds and nuts.

However, in the shadows a tom cat prowled closer, his every pawstep drawing him closer to his target. The mouse seemed completely unaware of this, most likely because the cat was downwind and relied on hiding in the shadows to conceal his scent.

The tom readied himself for the kill, crouching down and bunching up his muscles to spring. He licked his lips at the thought of mouse meat.

It was too late for the small rodent. Just as it looked up to see the cat, the feline was already upon it, pinning it down with a paw against the leaf mold and dirt ground. It let out a sharp squeal as the cat’s claws slid out and his head leaned down to snap its neck.

Suddenly, a metallic _tik tik tik tik tik_ rang out, startling the tom cat. He jerked his head upwards, eyes wide and ears straining to hear what the noise was. This gave the mouse a window of opportunity to escape, and it gladly took it, scurrying off back to its burrow.

The tom scowled, knowing his prey had gotten away. He crossly glared at the forest surrounding him, still wondering what the noise could have been...

*******

The tom cat blinked his eyes open, finding himself in his human’s living room. He sighed and shook his head. He must have dreamed about the forest again... But why? He wasn’t a forest cat. He was simply a kittypet named Rusty.

Sniffing the air, he realized the noise had been the humans filling his food dish. He stood up, stretching each of his limbs and yawning. Smacking his lips, he padded through the dining room and into the kitchen, the black and white tile chilly underneath his paws. He finally arrived at his food bowl, the brown pellets looking very unappetizing. However, Rusty still sat down and lowered his head, munching on the pellets gingerly.   
  


For whatever reason, the food tasted blander than normal. Usually, he could find a little flavor in them, yet something screamed at him that this was off...

He finished with a half-empty bowl and scowled before padding away from his bowl. He slipped through the cat door, breathing a sigh of relief as soon as he was out of the stuffy kitchen and into the cool night air.

He padded through the garden, carefully not to step on any branches from the rose bush and weaved his way through the small wildflowers popping up. He noted that his humans would probably weed them out soon, as they always seemed to like their garden neat and trimmed.

Rusty bunched his muscles up in preparation to jump onto the fence and took a big leap. He managed to right himself before he fell, thank goodness, but that was hardly important when he caught sight of the woodlands a few cat-lengths in from of his house.

Rusty sighed dreamily. The woods looked absolutely gorgeous tonight. The budding foliage and growing blue and white wildflowers were cast in a silvery glow by the nearly full moon. The crickets chirped and night birds quietly sang, the sounds mixing together to form a delightful song of the wild.

Rusty leaned forward, tail flicking excitedly as his eyes bore into the undergrowth. He wondered what kind of prey lived in the forest.

“Hiya, Rusty!” A new, nasally voice called out. Rusty leaped a foot in the air, a yowl of shock ripping from his throat. He whirled around, tail bushed and shaking.

“Uh, Rus, you okay there? It’s just me!” The black and white kitten in front of him said cautiously. Rusty sighed as his fur lowered. It was just his neighbor, Smudge.

“S-sorry, Smudge...” Rusty meowed. The plump tom shook his head, padding to where Rusty was sitting.

“It’s okay, Rusty! I should have said something before scaring you like that!” Smudge reassured, “You did look like a pinecone, though!”

Smudge laughed, snorting in between each guffaw. Rusty couldn’t help but chuckle too, Smudge’s good mood infectious.

Smudge then turn to him, head tilted and a brow raised.

“So what’re you doing out here? Aren’t your housefolk gonna be going to bed soon?”

Rusty shuffled his paws, eyes trailing to the forest. Smudge never liked when he brought up why he was out here so often...

“Oh, c’mon!” The black and white tom kitten suddenly huffed, “You’re seriously looking at the woods?! Again?!”

“...So?”

“So?!” Smudge sounded incredulous at his response. “Doesn’t Scourge always tell us that he met wildcats when he was your age?! He said they beat him up real bad, and-”

Rusty scoffed loudly, rolling his eyes. “Scourge, the exact same tom who leads an alley cat gang who picks fights with dogs?! I’m sure that he could handle himself if he went back in there!”

“But he said they eat house cats like us for breakfast! What if-!”

“Look, Smudge,” Rusty’s voice turned serious and he turned his head to his friend, “If I do run into wild cats and they aren’t friendly, I’ll just run back home. Trust me, I’m not stupid enough to try to take on cats who live in the woods!”

Smudge was silent for several seconds, trying to think of a response. However, he eventually sighed and hopped off the fence and back into his own garden.

“You better keep your promise, then Rus!” He called over his shoulder.

“I will!” His friend called after him. As Smudge slipped back in through the cat door, the ginger tom kitten hopped off the fence and into the woods, a bright smile on his face and excitement filling his being.

The forest was even more beautiful inside, he noted. The trees provided a perfect canopy, one that would protect from the harsher rays of sunlight, but it was still wide enough to give him a clear view of the night sky.

Rusty hadn’t realized how amazing the sky was at night. Usually, the lights of the city would simply make it dark and bland, but now Rusty could see the shining lights clustered together, glimmering like sunlight on water.

These were stars, Rusty realized. His father, Jake had told him plenty of stories of how beautiful they looked. He silently agreed with his late father.

However, a rustling in the bushes soon interrupted his thoughts. Rusty whirled around, not scared but still cautious. A scent filled the air, one smelled distinctly cat-like, yet... it almost had an accent of leaf mold and tree bark.

“Who’s-”

Suddenly, Rusty was bowled over by a hissing and yowling tom. The tom chomped on Rusty’s ear, trying to jerk his head upwards to tear it. In a panic, the ginger tom kit’s unsheathed paws flailed in the air, claws slicing the bridge of the tom cat’s nose.

The cat let go of him to screech and hold his muzzle in his paws, hissing in pain. Rusty instantly sprang to his feet and ran as fast as he could to the fences, Smudge’s warning rebounding around in his mind.

But it seemed like the cat wasn’t going to give up, for Rusty soon heard yowling behind him. He shut his eyes.

_‘I... I’m sorry Smudge, but I have to fight him off!’_ He thought to himself before whirling around and launching himself at the tom.

The tom seemed shocked and skidded to a halt, much to Rusty’s satisfaction. The ginger tom kitten rammed himself into the tom’s chest, sending the tom flying backwards into the base of a tree.

The ginger kitten stood on shaky legs, panting heavily. His claws were out and ready to fight, back arching in a battle stance.

He was slightly disappointed when he saw that his attacker, a fluffy gray cat around his age, was huffing and puffing in between breaths but didn’t seem aggressive anymore.

“D-did you... did you really have to hit in the... the chest?” He huffed. Rusty relaxed slightly but kept his claws ready if the attacker tried anything funny.

“Yes! You pounced on me!” Rusty said incredulously. The gray kitten sighed.

“Y-yeah, sorry ‘bout that...” He said simply, “Bluestar wanted to see if you could fight...”

Rusty relaxed more, deciding this kitten wouldn’t try anything. He inquired, “Who’s Bluestar?”

“She’s the leader of ThunderClan, the clan I live in!” Graypaw said. When Rusty simply gave him a bewildered look however, Graypaw looked almost offended,

“What, you don’t know about the clans who live out here?!” He demanded.

“...No?”

“Oh. Well, there’s four clans who live out her, and I belong to ThunderClan, the clan who lives out here!” Graypaw explained, “We all hunt, fight, and care for each other fiercely! It may be hard living out in the wild, but in the end, we all have each other!”

Graypaw then scoffed. “But then again, what would you know? You’re a housecat! You haven’t felt the love of your family and clanmates, the thrill of the hunt, the victory of a hard battle won! You just live with humans!”

Rusty bristled at such words, offended. How dare this cat imply he’s better than him just because he lives in a clan out in the wild?!

“I-I’m sure if I joined you’re stupid clan, I’ll bet I’d have the same experience you have!!” Rusty yelled. He was a little surprised at himself that he said joined, but he still went with it.

“Really?” Graypaw chuckled. “You think you can handle being out here?”

“Yes!”

“Well, how ‘bout this; Bluestar told me to assess your fighting skills and the ask if you want to join. We’ve been a little low on warriors lately-”

“Why?”

“... winter’s are hard, okay? Anyways, she told me to ask you if you’d like to join.”

Rusty blinked in shock. He, joining a clan of feral cats that live out in the woods?! What if he got sick or hungry or cold?! Where would the vet, the food, the cat bed be?!

But, longing to be with these clan cats stirred in his heart. He wanted to leave with them badly, and he wanted to know all the possibilities that recently opened up for him. He lived like this in his dreams, but could he really live like that in real life?

Besides, it wasn’t like his owner cared about him that much...

“O-okay!” Rusty said quickly, surprising even himself, “I... I need to say goodbye to a friend though...”

Graypaw nodded. “Cool. I ask Bluestar if a patrol can get you by evening, if that’s okay.”

“N-no, that’s perfect.” Rusty murmured. Graypaw nodded.

“Alrighty. Oh! And, uh, what’s your name?”

“Rusty.”

Graypaw smiled at him.

“Well, I hope to see ya later, Rusty!” He called over his shoulder as his leaped back in the foliage.

He gazed through the canopy leaves and at the midnight sky. He turned to leave, but his longings pulled back. He wanted to follow Graypaw back to his home, but he knew he needed to say goodbye to his friends. Before he leaped into the lawn, he looked back at the forest. The gentle night breeze seemed to whisper to him. But tonight Rusty ignored it, knowing that tomorrow, his life would change forever.


	3. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the short chapter, wanted to get something out for you guys!

When Rusty woke up the next day, he found himself in his cat bed. He sat up and began grooming himself, a shiver of excitement coursing through his veins.

If what Graypaw told him was true, then it sounded much better than living in a stuffy old house with owners who were gone half the time! He quickly licked his paw and ran them through his whiskers, stretching one last time before he padded out the cat door.

The outside world felt warm and welcoming, Rusty noticed. He looked around, noticing the dandelions and wild roses that posed from the green grass. He took a deep breath in, noting all the earthy scents.

This day seemed perfect to join a clan, he joked to himself. Almost time to meet the patrol too, judging by the sun getting lower in the sky.

“Heya, Rusty!” Smudge chirped from the fence, hopping down to join Rusty on the ground, “I saw some baby sparrows today! They were super cute, just stretching their wings and all!”

Rusty then said without thinking, “Oo, fun! You wanna catch one?”

Smudge’s face twisted into a look of horror as he flinched. “Ick!” The black and white tom cat cried, “Why would you wanna do that?!”

Rusty paused, thinking carefully over his next words. This would be a good opportunity to tell him, but it would obviously put the tom kitten into a state of panic.

In the end though, the ginger tom decided to tell him.

“I met a wild cat last night!” He explained, “He invited me to join his clan!”

“WHAT?!” Smudge yowled, eyes as wide as saucers, “You actually met a feral?!”

Rusty nodded, puffing out his chest in pride. “Yep! And I tussled with him too, but he turned out to be friendly!”

“You fought him?!” Smudge cried, tail bushed out in shock. Rusty chuckled nervously.

“Smudge, it’s okay! He was our age!”

“But he’s _feral_ , Rus!” Smudge cried, “ _Feral!_ You could have died!”

“But I _didn’t!_ ” The ginger tom kit exasperated, “Yeah, he attacked me at _first,_ but then he invited me into his clan!”

Smudge fell silent, eyes wide in horror.

“You’re seriously not-”

“Uh... yes?”

“ _Rusty, how could you?!_ ” Smudge screeched, grabbing his paws around Rusty’s shoulders and shaking him. “For all you know, that cat could be setting a trap!”

“But _why_ would they go through the effort of letting me go and waiting all day just to kill me?!”

“I dunno, they’re real clever, I guess! And you’ve clearly fallen for it!” Smudge hissed. Rusty shook his head defiantly.

“That just doesn’t make sense!” He pointed out, “If they really were savage, that cat could have just killed right there! But he invited me and then let me go!”

Smudge’s eyes bore into Rusty, looking hurt. Eventually, his paws slipped off of his shoulders, and he turned away and sat down with a huff.

“Fine! Go get eaten! I don’t care...”

Rusty blinked. What was this? He hadn’t meant hurt the tom; they were practically brothers!

“Smudge-”

“I said go!” Smudge snapped. “If you want to join them so bad, just go...”

Rusty paused, biting his lower lip. He didn’t want to leave his best friend so hurt...

“Well... maybe you could join me?”

“...What?”

“I mean, you could come with me!” Rusty explained, “We could both join ThunderClan- the clan the cat met is in!”

Smudge paused, craning his head around to look at Rusty.

“I dunno, Rus...” He meowed. Rusty pouted and stepped closer to Smudge.

“Aw c’mon, please?” Rusty begged, “Pretty please?”

“But what if we get hungry or sick or tired?”

“Graypaw said the clan makes sure to take care of everyone; they all hunt and fight for each other!”

“... Alright, fine...” Smudge sighed, “But if they attack us, we’re going straight home!”

“Okay!”

And with that, Rusty leapt over the fence, tail waving in the air excitedly. Smudge was more hesitant but still followed closely, taking one last look at his house before he left.


End file.
